HESPERIA — After changing hands for the third time in less than a decade, an Old Town Hesperia restaurant has closed its doors again after it reopened in April.

Gayle Anderson, who lives near The Old Town Cafe, said she was shocked that the eatery had closed after being open for about three months.

“The restaurant served huge portions, and the customer service and food were excellent,” Anderson said. “The portions were so big that a senior citizen once complained that they served too much food.”

Anderson said the last time she visited the cafe it seemed to be “overstaffed, with not enough customers to warrant all the employees.”

Mayor Thurston “Smitty” Smithy said he was “totally flabbergasted” when he heard that the cafe had closed so soon.

“I suggested to a group of friends that we try out the new place,” Smith said. “When they told me that they had closed I couldn’t believe it.”

Located in a quiet neighborhood on Orange Street, just east of Sultana High School, the eatery is “definitely in a unique location,” Smith said.

In a May interview, owner John Kaparos, 39, said he felt compelled to open his own place after visiting the site, which had been Mary Ann's Restaurant but had recently closed.

After “pouring a small fortune” into cleaning and remodeling, Kaparos said he and his family opened the Old Town Cafe on Easter morning, complete with a player-piano that included 350 scrolls of music.

Kaparos did not immediately return calls seeking comment this week.

Rene Ray De La Cruz may be reached at 760-951-6227, RDeLa Cruz@VVDailyPress.com or on Twitter@DP_ReneDeLaCruz.